1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system and method for providing information services, and more particularly, to a system for providing video-on-demand services and Internet services in a wireless network environment and a method therefor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wireless Internet is the use of the Internet without a wired connection. Although the Internet or PC communications can be enjoyed without wires thanks to developments in mobile telecommunications, the number of users who use the Internet when they move from one place to another is still limited. This is because the transmission speeds of most mobile phones currently used are limited to 9.6–14.4 Kbps. Therefore, communications of Internet data without special processing takes much time and on-air telecommunications costs are high. When purchase expenses for necessary devices, such as a computer, a wireless modem, and connecting cables, are added to the costs, it would appear that wide spread use of mobile communications of Internet will take a long time.
Four multinational companies, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and Unwired Planet, proposed a wireless application protocol (WAP) for the first time in 1997, and since then, various companies all over the world, including service providers, equipment manufacturers, and application providers, are participating in the development of the WAP protocol.
WAP is a generic name for a protocol that enables the use of the Internet from a small wireless terminal such as a mobile phone or a personal data assistant (PDA). Previously, in order to use the Internet with a mobile phone, a notebook computer with an installed modem card for a mobile phone had to be connected to a terminal. However, the WAP has enabled Internet communications using the mobile phone terminal itself.
Since unlike existing mobile phone services, a service using the WAP uses Internet technologies that are being standardized globally, a wide range of services can be provided. Currently, diverse services are being prepared, and among them are diverse communication tools such as an on-line information service.
In an information service, voice services or partial character services have previously been provided. However, when a WAP technology is adopted, information services can be received in a place registered by a pre-setting, even when a user is away from home. When this service is provided, a user does not need dial a predetermined number to find the information the user wants.
However, wireless services using the WAP have been limited to text transmission so far. Therefore, a technology which can add multimedia functions to a wireless terminal having the WAP for text transmission so that the terminal can receive diverse services is required.